Pronunciation guide

Faroese pronunciation is quite straightforward once the basic rules have been learnt. Stress always falls on the the first syllable on any word.

Vowels

Accented vowels are treated as letters in their own right in Faroese, with their own pronunciation. All vowels have long and short forms. Vowels are short in front of two or more consonants, otherwise they are long.

A a

(Short) like "a" in "land", (long) like "ea" in "bear".

Á á

(Short) like "aw" in "law", (long) like "wha" in "whack".

E e

(Short) like "e" in "bet", (long) like "ai" in "air".

I i

(Short) like "i" in "sit", (long) like the "ee" in "see".

Í í

(Short) like the "wi" in "with", (long) like "whee" in "wheeze".

O o

(Short) like "aw" in "law", (long) like "oa" in "oar".

Ó ó

(Short) like "e" in "father", (long) like "o" in "wrote".

U u

(Short) like "oo" in "foot", (long) like "oo" in "food".

Ú ú

(Short) like Faroese long "i" but said with rounded lips, (long) like Faroese long "u" but said with rounded lips.

Y y

Same as Faroese "i": (Short) like "i" in "sit", (long) like the "ee" in "see".

Ý ý

Same as Faroese "í": (Short) like the "wi" in "with", (long) like "whee" in "wheeze".

Æ æ

Same as Faroese "a": (Short) like "a" in "land", (long) like "ea" in "bear".

Ø ø

(Short) like "e" in "father", (long) like short Faroese "ó" but lengthened.

Consonants

B b

Like "b" in "bed".

D d

Like "d" in "day".

Ð ð

Like the "y" in "yes" when it is the final letter of a word, otherwise used to separate two vowels when they are in different syllables.

G g

Silent when it is the final letter of a word, pronounced directly before and after consonants. It is used also as a separator between two vowels when they are in different syllables.

H h

Like "h" in "hot".

J j

Like "y" in "yes".

K k

Like "k" in "k".

L l

Like "l" in "like".

M m

Like "m" in "me".

N n

Like "n" in "nurse".

P p

Like "p" in "push".

R r

Like "r" in "radio".

S s

Like "s" in "sun"

T t

Like "t" in "take".

V v

Like "v" in "value".

Common diphthongs

ei

(Short) Like "i" in "ice", (Long) Like (but not the same as) "oy" in "boy".

ey

(Short) Like "e" in "bet", (Long) Like "ey" in "hey".

oy

(Short) Like "o" in "hot" fused together with "ey" in "key", like (but not the same as) "oy" in "boy".

ðr

Like "gr" in "great".

dj, ge, gi, gy, gey, gj, ggj

Like "j" in "jaw".

ft

Like "tt" in "butter".

hj

Like "y" in "yes".

ke, ki, ky, key, kj

Like "ch" in "church".

ll

Like "t" and "l" fused together. Similar to Welsh "ll".

rn

Like "dn" in "hadn't".

sj, sk, ske, ski, sky, skey, skj

Like "sh" in "ship".

Phrase list

Basics

Note: The hyphens (-) are only there to help you break down the pronunciation of words. Pronounce the word without pausing on hyphens.

Numbers

NOTE: The numbers 1 to 3 have three gender forms in Faroese, and this gender form changes depending upon whether the number is attached to a masculine, feminine, or neuter word. Only numbers one to three have these gender forms. In addition the numbers one to three change for the four grammatical cases.